PROVIDENCE
— The state's climate change study commission was supposed to issue an annual
update by March 1. Instead, the Rhode Island Climate Commission is poised for
an overhaul.
Last
week, Sen. Joshua Miller, D-Cranston, introduced a bill (pdf) to recreate the state climate
commission, which he co-chairs, so that it answers to the state Office of
Statewide Planning.
The legislation effectively dissolves the existing board at the end of this year. A new permanent board would then be established and assume the same goals as the current 28-member committee. The new board would be appointed by the State Planning Council.
Since
it was established in 2010, the board has been in flux because of a lack of
funding and staff. Last year, a bill to have the Coastal Resources Management
Council (CRMC) oversee the commission was vetoed by Gov. Lincoln Chafee.
To
help the climate study and mitigation process, Rep. Art Hardy, D-Cranston, has
reintroduced a 2011 bill to directly cut greenhouse gas emissions 20 percent
below 1990 levels. The program would be overseen by the state Department of
Environmental Management (DEM), which Handy believes has more authority to
influence change than the Division of Planning.
Despite
the uncertainty, three subcommittees have been meeting to assess the health,
environmental and infrastructure risks of climate change. Eventually,
adaptation and mitigation recommendations from the subcommittees would be
proposed for the state to address.
On
March 11, the Natural Resources and Habitat Working Group reported updates in
ongoing studies of the impacts of sea-level rise on salt marshes. Data are
confirming that sea-level rise is happening three to four times faster in Rhode
Island and the Northeast than the global average, according to the group.
Powerful
storms and unusually high tides have made it difficult for marshes to drain,
altering the habitat and creating breeding sites for mosquitoes and algae
blooms. New sediments are left behind and existing vegetation is being replaced
by new plant life. As it rises, salt water moves inland, changing habitat and
altering septic systems. The marshes also migrate inland through erosion, but
face challenges when they are blocked by manmade and natural structures.
A
new shoreline study, called the Beach Special Area Management Plan (Beach SAMP), conducted by the CRMC will
look at creating policies for buffers and set-back requirements for natural
human impediments to marsh migration and coastal changes from climate change.
The three-year study begins April 4 and will begin by studying the southern
coastline and Block Island.
“For
some parts of the shoreline, we’re going to have make some difficult choices,”
said Jim Boyd, co-chair of the Natural Resources and Habitat Working Group.
“The more input we have the better the process will be.”